Savin' Me
by mykkila09
Summary: Sequel to In A Single Moment; summary inside. Story has slash; DON'T like, then DON'T read...


**Title: **Savin' Me**  
Author: **Mykkila09**  
Setting: **During Deathly Hallows**  
Summary: **everyone needs saving; some more than others. Draco reflects on his life and makes a decision that changes everything. And the final battle between the Light and Dark sides.  
**Warning: **story contains mentions of torture and swearing and character (canon) deaths.

**Story Word Count: **14,853

**A/N: **this story is basically a continuation/sequel to _In A Single Moment, Everything Can Change_. It starts from Draco's POV and will do so until we get to where _Single Moment_ left off, then it'll be general. So…enjoy…

**A/N 2: **Initially, I had this story as a one-shot based around the sixth book; it would've been about Draco and how he was dealing with everything, including Dumbledore's death and having Voldemort in his house and would've ended with the bathroom scene, where he and Harry attack each other, but I forgot about it, and then then I did _Single Moment, _and I got back inspiration for it and decided to do it as a sequel/companion piece.

**A/N 3: **it's also based on Nickelback's _Savin' Me_. I love that song and when I first thought of this idea, that song came to mind and after listening to it again and putting it to the story, I realized it fit perfectly.

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all its affiliates belong to JK Rowling, Bloomsbury/Scholastic, and Warner Bros. Studio. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended and no money is being made. This is a work of fiction.

"Speaking"  
_'Thinking'  
{Parssseltongue}_

* * *

In his room at Malfoy Manor, Draco sat on the chair below the window and stared out. His grey eyes took in the darkness and the figures moving around as his mind drifted over the last few months.

When his father had told him about the Dark Lord and his plans for the Purebloods, he had been excited; he didn't hate Muggles or Muggleborns as much as he portrayed. What he hated was the things they did; Muggleborns were a danger to their world because of the simple fact that they came to the Wizarding World; they disregarded all the traditions that they met here and tried to enforce their own. And Muggle Sympathizers were even worse because they allowed it to happen.

It's why the Weasleys were considered blood-traitors among Purebloods because they seem to not only welcome the Muggleborns with open arms, but they gave up their own traditions in favour of learning more about the Muggle ones, and they saw nothing wrong with that. As a result, old traditions were disappearing more and more; like Christmas replacing Yule, or Halloween replacing Samhain. When he had learned that the Dark Lord planned to correct that, to bring back the old Pureblood traditions, he had been very interested and knew that he would join the cause when he was old enough to. But then, things changed.

When the Dark Lord had returned at the end of his fourth year, his father and the other Death Eaters had been excited. He had been as well. He had felt so important the night he had gotten the Dark Mark, like he was a part of something big. His father had spent his entire life telling him about how important the Dark Lord was and the greatness he had done and will do, how he would lead them— all the purebloods, and his followers—back to their rightful standing in the Wizarding World and how everything was for the betterment of their world.

It was all a lie.

Nothing had happened except for death and more deaths; people kept dying and the Dark Lord kept trying to kill Potter. It was nothing like his father said it would be. For as long as he could remember, he always looked up to his father; he trusted him and believed everything he said.

But Lucius had failed Draco in the worst way possible; because of him, he Draco was coerced into becoming a murderer; because of him, Draco saw things that he wished he never had, things he wished he could forget.

A lone tear slipped down his cheek, and he wiped it away, only for more to fall and before he knew it, he was sobbing quietly.

This was not how he thought his life would be. He didn't want this; he had no friends to speak, and the ones that he had thought were his friends, turned out not to be, his mother's life was in danger because he couldn't do the one thing he was asked to do, his own life was in danger and he was considered a pariah in the eyes of the Wizarding World for his part in Dumbledore's death.

He was overwhelmed by everything; by his father's actions—both past and present—by his own actions, and by everything else. And no matter what he did, he couldn't see to rise above it. It just felt like he was falling and no one was there to catch him. All he wanted, all he needed was someone to care about him.

No. What he needed was someone to save him; save him from his father, from the Dark Lord, from this life that he was forced into. At that thought, he immediately thought of only one person.

Harry Potter.

'_I doubt he'd care now…not after the way I've treated him,' _he thought to himself. That was one of—if not—the biggest regrets he had in his life. The way he had reacted when Harry had turned down his friendship that first year had been pretty stupid and petty and looking back, he had been hurt and confused—no one had ever rejected him before—so he had lashed out.

He fought with Harry instead of doing what, deep down, he had wanted to do, which was apologize. Instead, he had let his Malfoy pride and his father's words and his own jealousy of Harry choosing Weasley over him stop that from happening. And from that moment onwards, he had made Harry his enemy, even if it wasn't what he really wanted.

He hadn't known when his feelings for the dark haired teen had changed, but if he had to guess, it would've been third year after their first class. When he had seen Harry on the back on Buckbeak, he had seen pure joy in the teen's face and it had filled him with warmth which had confused him at the time, so he did what he normally did; he lashed out and ultimately paid the price.

Every year, it seemed he did something that would guarantee he and Harry were fighting, but it wasn't until the night in that bathroom, that he finally figured out why he was so angry over Harry choosing Weasley over him and why he always picked fights with him and why he always felt weird to know that the teen had been hurt.

The night that Harry had found him crying in Myrtle's bathroom all he had wanted was to beg the brunet to help him, to save him, and it was then that he realized that he was in love with Harry Potter. But things had gone to hell because Harry _had _tried to help, but he had rejected it and had tried to hurt him. And now, all he had left from that encounter was the bitter taste of regret and the scars on his chest.

'_I really screwed up. I should've just told him. Why? Why didn't I? I am such an idiot! I wouldn't be here now if I had just chosen to trust him…but I didn't.'_

He wished he could go back and change things, but he can't. The night that Dumbledore died, that was a life changer; he wished he could go back to that night; that he had listened to the Old Man and had taken his offer. He really wished things were different, that he really could go back and re-do his life, but he couldn't. And now, now he was stuck in a house where he feared for his life every day; where he saw and heard things that left him sick and disgusted.

He was in a prison, locked inside. He had nowhere to go, and no one to trust to take him even if he did. And the one person he wanted to, couldn't.

A knock at his door drew him from his thoughts and he quickly wiped his eyes and cast a Charm, erasing all traces of his crying jag.

"Yes?" he called out after making sure his voice was steady enough.

One of the Death Eaters opened the door, "You're needed downstairs."

"Says who?" Draco sneered at the man as he stood up.

"Bellatrix and your father," the man glared, "If you don't want to come, it's your punishment." The man grinned, "so don't come."

Draco scowled, "Your message has been delivered. Leave this wing…NOW!"

The man gave one last glare before leaving. The moment the door closed, Draco let out a deep breath as he started shaking. He had no idea what his father or aunt wanted, but he knew it wasn't good.

With a sigh, he left his room, making sure to close and lock the door. His steps were filled with trepidation and each one felt as if he was walking to his doom. The closer he got the room where he was needed, he could hear his aunt cackling and shivered. Just before he was dragged inside by the Death Eater standing watch, he only had one thought;

'_I just hope it's not another one of Aunt Bella's "lessons".'_

He was wrong. It was much worse than that. He looked around and saw his parents and Bellatrix and from when his eyes caught sight of Hermione and Weasley a few feet away, but it was the person on the ground that held his attention.

The Death Eater behind him pushed him, causing him to stumble and fall to his knees. He watched as Bellatrix went over and grabbed Harry's arm, pulling him to where he Draco was kneeling and shoved him to kneel as well. "Do you know who this is?"

"Is it Potter Draco?" Lucius questioned, taking a step closer to the two teens, "is it?" in his voice, the hope that it _was _Harry could be heard.

He ignored his father and aunt and everyone else and focused his eyes on the face in front of him. Distorted though it may be, he instantly recognized Harry and it was only the slight tightening of his jaw and the widening of his eyes that gave away his horror.

He could see the green bleed back into the blue eyes in front of him, confirming that it was Harry, and his heart started pounding. He could read the pleading in them, and found himself unable to ignore.

"I-I don't know," he said finally, knowing that he was possibly placing himself in more danger, but knowing he didn't care. If saving Harry now meant the dark haired boy would have a chance to survive or escape later, he would do it, "I can't be sure."

Bellatrix turned to Hermione, "Granger was it? Where is Harry Potter?"

"I'm not saying," Hermione jutted her chin forward.

Bellatrix snarled in anger, "put them with the rest." She motioned to Hermione, "not her."

He swallowed over the heavy lump in his throat and could only watch helplessly as the boy he loved was dragged down to the dungeons. A scream sounded throughout the room and he turned back to see his aunt pointing her wand at Granger.

His hands clenched into fists, hidden from view, as he stayed in his kneeling position. He wanted to help her, because he knew how important she was to Harry, but there was nothing he could do.

Slowly he got to his feet and without drawing attention to himself, he moved further into the room, but away from his parents.

Bellatrix tortured Hermione with the Cruciatus curse and her screams made him ache and for the first time, he wished that _he _was the one being tortured, if only to spare the girl that kind of pain.

He could do nothing though; he wasn't brave enough, or strong enough. So, as it was, he could only as his aunt continued her torture, could only watch as she carved the word 'Mudblood' into Granger's arms, could only watch and feel empathy because he was in her position.

He had no idea how much time had passed; his eyes were unseeing as he stared around the room, passing over his parents, Bellatrix and Hermione. A commotion drew his attention, but before he could even move, he found his wand flying from his grip, as did everyone else's.

Startled, he looked up and saw Harry and Weasley standing there. He could only watch as Harry and the redhead made their way over to Granger, with Harry throwing out spells the entire time.

"_Accio _wands!" Harry shouted out and Ron, Draco and Hermione's wands went soaring to him.

He could only watch as the brunet let go of Granger, caught the wands and then rewrapped his arm around her again.

He wanted to help. He really did. His entire body trembled with the need to help them, but he couldn't. He was too scared, too much of a coward to do anything. If he helped them now, when they left, he would be the one to pay for it, or maybe his mother. And he couldn't allow his mother to be hurt for his mistake…not again.

So he could only watch as his father fire another spell, only for to Harry turn on him and fire off his own. "_Bombarda!"_

He flinched back when the spell hit the wall behind his father, throwing debris forward and striking the man in the back.

As he watched his father dazed on the ground, vicious satisfaction rolled through him.

"Dobby!" Harry shouted as he gathered Hermione, drawing the blond's attention back to them. Ron stepped close to the two of them just as the elf popped into the room.

"Master Harry!" Dobby's huge eyes look around the room.

"Get us out of here!" Harry commanded. When the elf reached out to touch him, his gaze swung around to the blond. He couldn't leave him. "Draco."

Said teen's gaze moved to Harry and his body shook. _'Why is he calling me? Since when did he call me Draco?'_

"What are you doing?" Ron hissed, unable to believe that Harry was actually calling the blond teen to go with him.

Harry ignored the redhead and locked his gaze onto the blond's, pleading with his eyes for him to join them, to leave with them, with _him. _

'_He can't mean that, can he?' _the blond thought desperately when he saw the pleading in the green eyes. His gaze swung down to where his father lay. He saw the sneer on the man's face and could read the emotions in his eyes.

His father's eyes promised severe punishment if he even thought of taking Harry's hand.

"You would be foolish to do it Draco," Lucius warned. He stifled the groan that threatened to escape as he painfully got to his feet.

"Draco," Narcissa called out to her son, her voice trembling from the emotions within it.

He looked over at and locked gazes with his mother. When her face remained indifferent, he turned his gaze back to Harry.

"Please," Harry whispered, though the word was heard by everyone.

'_What do I do? My father would have me stay, but my heart, my heart and everything else is screaming to go with him. Do I take the chance? Should I?'_

He was torn. He wanted to go with Harry, but he wasn't sure if he could leave.

"Do not do it," Lucius took a step towards his son.

He ignored his father and looked at his mother once again. This time, he could read the emotions in her eyes; while he could see she wanted him to listen to his father, behind that, deeper, he could read what she really wanted. She wanted him safe and she knew that that meant he had to go.

He acknowledged the decision in her eyes. "I'm sorry."

And faster than thought possible, he was across the room, holding on to Harry's outstretched hand just as Dobby popped them out. The last thing he saw was the knife, thrown by Bellatrix, heading towards them.

~…~

They reappeared on a beach, landing on the shoreline in the water. He stumbled, as did the others and he coughed, not all that used to travelling that way. He saw Harry give Granger to Weasley, but there was something off about it; just the brunet's tone of voice and the way Weasley didn't really react.

Harry turned to Draco, "Do you know any spells? Anything that could save him?"

He looked from Harry to the elf, knowing that it was too late to help Dobby. He looked back to Harry with pained eyes, "I'm sorry, but it's too late."

Harry let out a scream of frustration and knelt next to the elf. "Dobby…I'm so sorry."

"It's alright Harry Potter sir," Dobby coughed. The elf tried to say something else, but before he could, he died.

"I'm sorry Dobby," Harry cried as he held the elf in his arms. He never expected this; he never wanted someone else to die for him.

The blond's heart was aching at pain in the scream and at Harry's tears. Stepping closer, he placed a hand on Harry's shoulder, "We should go."

Harry nodded and stood up, Dobby in his arms, and they made their way towards the cottage.

~…~

A month passed since he and the others arrived at Shell Cottage. For Draco, it was surreal. He had never thought that he'd be spending time in a Weasley house and for the first week, he had been very uncomfortable, especially with the younger Weasley glaring at him and sprouting crap every time he turned around.

The second week, Harry had snapped at him and things had settled down. While all that was happening, Hermione had been recovering from her "session" with his Aunt Bellatrix and Harry had dealt with Dobby's death.

Two major things also happened during the month; Harry's godfather, or acting godfather, Remus Lupin had shown up, and after a few words, had reluctantly accept that he was on their side now, well, more like Harry's side, but still.

He had had to watch as the wolf tried to shirk his responsibilities and had felt so much for Harry when the brunet didn't allow him to and even more when he was offered to be the godfather for the little boy, his own cousin. When the wolf had left, it was with the promise of not revealing anything he had found out, especially about Draco.

The other major thing that had happened was that he and Harry had started working on their relationship—if you could call it that. They had both admitted how they felt about each other and were in the process of learning how to be together.

Now, it was mid-afternoon and they were standing outside, and they were arguing. Draco took a stance a few feet away, allowing Harry and his two best friends to argue. He knew the redhead was angry that he was still around and he knew that somehow, the teen would force Harry to choose. And that scared Draco because he knew how much Weasley meant to Harry.

Shaking his head, he turned back to the argument.

"Why is he still here?!" Ron demanded. "He never should've came with us, and we should've made him leave a long time go!"

"None of your business," Harry snapped as he ran a hand through his hair.

"It's bloody well my business if the reason we get killed is because of him," Ron retorted, "He's Malfoy! And a Death Eater! He'll probably betray us the first chance he gets!"

"Just shut up Ron!" Hermione snapped and then she turned to Draco. "Don't worry. Harry trusts you, and that's enough for me."

Draco said nothing as he looked from Harry to Hermione, completely ignoring Weasley. If this was months ago, he would've retaliated, but, after everything that happened in the last few weeks, he wasn't feeling up fighting with Weasley. The last month he had spent in their company had brought them, at least him and Harry, closer and he and Granger had come to a truce.

"Where are you going then?" He asked instead, choosing to pretend as if Weasley wasn't there.

"Gringotts," Hermione answered, "there's something in Bellatrix's vault, something that belongs to You-Know-Who and we need to get it."

"Why?" His grey eyes narrowed as he thought on her words.

"Because," Harry said, "destroying that object is the only way to get rid of that monster once and for all."

"Let me come with," He near pleaded, "Bellatrix is my aunt. I'll have an easier time gaining access to the vault than you will."

He couldn't imagine leaving Harry's side, not after everything. As far as he was concerned, his place was with the brunet. He couldn't let Harry face whatever he was going to do alone. What if he lost him?

"Griphook agreed to help us," Hermione sighed, "but to be honest, I'm feeling a bit uneasy at the whole thing. It seems a bit weird, a goblin helping us break into one of their vaults."

"You should be uneasy," He nodded in agreement, needing them to understand the severity of the situation and hoping to make his case to go with them better, "from what I know about the goblins, is that they do nothing for free and as easy as that, they could turn on you. I wouldn't trust the goblin, because they don't trust us."

"We have no choice," Harry shook his head, "we have to use him."

"Then let me come with you," He insisted. Why couldn't Harry understand why he was doing this? Why he wanted to come?

"No," Harry turned to look at him.

"Listen," Draco took a step closer to the brunet, "I defied my father and turned my back on the Dark Side. As of right now, I'm considered a traitor and I'm just as much a target as you. The safest place I could ever be is with you."

Harry stared into the grey eyes for a few minutes before he looked over at Hermione, "'Mione?"

"He's right Harry," Hermione stepped closer to her best friend, "we can't leave him. If either side finds him, it'll be over. He has to stay with us."

Harry looked back at Draco, "alright, but if I tell you to do something, you do it, no questions asked."

Draco crossed his arms, "Not if it what you tell me to do places your life or ours in danger."

"We shouldn't trust him!" Ron injected, his blue eyes flashing with anger. He really couldn't understand why Harry and Hermione were willing to trust him, to work with him, especially after everything he had done. "We don't need his help!"

"And we don't need yours!" Hermione glared at the redhead. "You think we need the kind of help you have to give? The kind that involves leaving your supposed best friend and the girl you loved to fend for themselves while you relax in the comfort of your brother's house!"

"What?" Ron blanched and his face flushed as guilt filled him.

"What are you talking about Hermione?" Harry asked, his voice dangerously low.

"When Ron here abandoned us back in the Forest," Hermione spat, "Fleur told me he showed up. He spent his time eating and relaxing and enjoying himself while we were fighting for our lives. The only reason he left was because he told Bill we got separated and had a fight, so Bill made him leave."

Grey eyes widened in shock and disbelief over what he was hearing. He couldn't believe that Weasley ha actually abandoned his two friends when they needed him the most.

Harry's green eyes snapped over to Ron and the redhead looked away, unable to hold the gaze.

"You're not coming with us," Harry said after a lengthy silence.

"You can't do that!" Ron looked up at him, "I messed up, I get it, but are you really going to choose _him _over me?!"

"And yet, you left us," Harry replied, his body heaving from the deep breaths he was taking to calm himself down, "and to be honest Ron, I don't, I _can't, _have you watching my back, watching Hermione's back, when I'm not sure you won't run away again."

"And neither can I," Hermione added sadly.

"You have to know I'm sorry I left," Ron reached out to grab Hermione's hand, but let his own drop when she stepped out of reach.

"We know," Hermione nodded, "but that still doesn't change the fact that you did."

"What about everything Malfoy's done to us?" Ron demanded, "How can you trust him?"

Draco opened his mouth to defend himself, but was beaten by Harry.

"We're in a bloody war Ron!" Harry shouted, and then, took deep calming breaths—again—to prevent himself from hexing the redhead. "It's time to grow up! It doesn't matter what you say, it still won't change anything. The truth of it is I just don't trust you…not anymore."

Draco could see that the words had hurt Weasley.

Ron glared at the three of them, "Fine then! See if I care. When he turns on you, I'll be glad to say I told you so!"

With that, he turned and headed back towards the cottage.

"Are you sure about this?" Draco asked as he watched the redhead go, feeling a warmth deep inside at the knowledge that Harry had chosen him over Weasley.

'_He picked me! I can't believe he chose me!' _Draco was beyond ecstatic. Ever since first year when Harry had rejected his hand in friendship he had been so hurt, but back then he didn't know it. And now, Harry had done the opposite. Harry had chosen him above Weasley.

"Yes," Harry nodded and then he let out a long and deep sigh. "We have to leave. We can't afford to waste any more time. Let's get Griphook and go."

The three of them turned and headed in the same direction as Ron, each of them silent as they thought over everything that had just happened and what they were about to do.

~…~

So, after saying goodbyes to Fleur and Bill, and Draco putting a spell on Ron to prevent him from saying anything to anyone about the last few months and Draco being there, the new Trio left Shell Cottage and headed to Gringotts.

Getting inside had been the easiest part; they managed to get to the vault and get the cup. The hardest part was them getting out; things turned bad when Griphook turned around and betrayed them.

Now, they were fighting for their lives, not only against the goblins, but by the defences Bellatrix had placed in the vault. As they fought off not only Bellatrix's defences, but the Goblins as well, Draco was cursing himself.

'_I knew this was a bad idea. Why didn't I try harder to convince him not to do this?' _but he knew why; he loved him, and he would follow him anywhere. They had already missed the last six years to be together, and he was determined not to miss anymore…even if that meant going on life threatening plans with the brunet. He was startled out of his thoughts by Harry's voice.

"Come on!" Harry shouted as he darted across the room to the dragon.

"Are you bloody mad?!" Hermione screeched as she saw what he was doing.

"He probably is," Draco panted out as he got next to her. He grabbed her arm and sprinted to the dragon, pulling her along with him. They got to the dragon, and he pushed Hermione in front of him, allowing Harry to pull her up first before he got on after.

The three huddled close together, holding tightly to one another.

Harry blasted a hole on the roof just as the dragon took off. They flew around for what seemed like hours. When the dragon flew over a lake, Harry turned to shout at the others;

"We're gonna have to jump when he goes down for a swim!"

"No!" Hermione shook her head and clutched tighter to her best friend.

"Ready?!" Harry shouted as he shifted to low standing position on the dragon's back.

"Ready!" Draco responded, holding tight to one of Hermione's hands. He trusted Harry.

"Now!" Harry said and jumped, pulling the other two with him.

They fell into the lake with a splash and resurfaced after a few minutes. Using a spell, they propelled themselves to the bank, where they collapsed, breathing heavily.

"You ok?" Harry looked at Hermione.

"I can't believe you did that!" Hermione scolded, or tried to; she was breathing too hard to get it right.

"Sorry," Harry grinned, not sounding sorry at all.

"I thought it was fun," Draco chuckled as he shifted to his knees. He should've been scared or chastising Harry with Gra—Hermione, but he couldn't. He was actually enjoying himself. After years of being jealous of Weasley being by Harry's side and experiencing everything with him, he was finally experiencing it for himself.

"Of course you did," Hermione muttered, "boys and their toys."

He shared a look with Harry and then a laugh.

"Come on," Harry said as he stood up. He held out a hand for Hermione to take. "We've got to get going."

"Where're we going now?" Draco asked as he stood up as well and moved to stand on the opposite side of Harry. His hand itched to take the brunet's hand, but he was still unsure if that was something he could do. The decision was taken out of his hands when Harry reached over and entwined their fingers together.

Draco couldn't stop the smile even if he had wanted to.

"Hogsmeade and then Hogwarts," Hermione answered, "we've got to go back to the school."

"You do know it's probably going to be crawling with Death Eaters, right?" Draco raised an eyebrow.

"It won't," Harry told him, "the wards around the school will stop them from entering."

"If You-Know-Who is there," Hermione sighed, "he _is _strong enough to destroy them."

"Ok, say his Death Eaters aren't there," Draco countered, "but he still has support in some of the students and the moment they see us coming towards the school, they'll find a way to get it to their parents."

"We know," Harry nodded, "but there're a lot of secret passages into the school."

"Why are we going there anyways?" Draco asked as they started walking.

"To destroy the cup," Harry said, "other than the sword of Gryffindor, which we don't have, a Basilisk fang is the only thing that'll destroy it."

"Where in the bloody hell are you going to find a Basilisk fang?" Draco stopped and looked at the two of them.

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks.

"Do you remember second year?" Harry grinned.

Draco flushed as he remembered how he had acted that year. "That was the year everyone accused you of being the heir of Slytherin."

"Well," Harry started and then, he told the blond all about the Chamber of Secrets and the Basilisk that had lived there. When he was done, Draco could only stare at him.

"Are you having me on?" Draco asked, looking from one to the other. "I don't believe it."

"Believe it," Hermione snorted, "it's all true."

"Sweet merciful Merlin," Draco swallowed, "I can't decide if you have the best of luck or the worst of luck."

Hermione and Harry exchanged looks a grin.

"It's a tossup sometimes," Hermione grinned.

"Although I'm leaning more towards unlucky," Harry added with a shrug.

"Right," Draco nodded, deciding not to make any comments on that, "so, we're going to break into Hogwarts and sneak down to the Chamber of Secrets for a fang from a legendary and dangerous creature?"

"Yep," Harry and Hermione nodded.

Draco looked at the two of them and then shrugged, "alright…let's get this over with."

~…~

They appeared in the school and Neville led them to where the other students were and Draco could see the confusion and wariness on the faces of the students as they stared at him. He took a slight step towards Harry and listened as he and Neville talked.

Soon enough, the left and quickly made their way to the corridors and up to the second floor girl's bathroom.

When Harry wanted them to separate, Draco's heart clenched with fear.

"I think we should stick together," He argued, unwilling to let the brunet out of his sight.

"I agree," Hermione said, "but I know we can't."

"Just how exactly are we supposed to get to where the Basilisk's corpse is?" Draco asked, "You'd have to be there to open it."

"Can't we just mimic the sounds?" Hermione asked, "I mean, Harry can repeat open in Parseltongue for us and we can mimic it when we get there."

"You can't," Draco shook his head, "Parseltongue is not a common language like Latin, or French or German, and I don't know much about it, but what I do know is that it's a language that you can't just say if you don't actually speak it."

"He's right," Harry sighed, "so what do we do?"

Draco bit his lip and thought for a few seconds. "We go together," he said, "it'll be faster as you know where to go. We can destroy the cup and then hurry back up here to find the Grey Lady."

"Or," Hermione smiled, "the two of you can go down to the Chambers, while I find the Grey Lady."

The boys exchanged looks.

"Alright," Harry nodded, "let's do this." He turned to Hermione, "we'll try to hurry. If you find her before we get back, send a Patronus."

"Got it," Hermione nodded, "good luck."

"You too," Harry said and quickly threw his arms around her, pulling her into a tight hug. He pulled back and then turned to the entrance. "Let's go."

~…~

Down in the Chamber of Secrets, Draco stood staring at the Basilisk in shock.

"You k-killed that?" Draco stuttered out, his voice shaky, "but, you were only twelve!"

"I know," Harry grinned briefly as he reached up to pull a fang from the corpse. He walked back over to Draco who pulled the cup from the bag he was wearing.

"Ready?" Harry asked as they knelt over the cup.

"Do it," Draco nodded. He watched with terrified eyes as Harry slammed the fang into the cup. When the black mist erupted, he and Harry jumped to their feet.

They could see Voldemort's face in the mist and they stumbled backwards as it seemed to move towards them. Water rose up around them and they stumbled back even further but didn't get too far as the water fell, soaking them through.

"It's done," Harry panted out.

Heart beating, Draco grabbed Harry's arm and turned the brunet to face him. Without saying anything, he pulled him close and pressed his lips against Harry's in their first kiss. He could tell the brunet was shocked, but he got over quickly and kissed back.

Draco pulled back after a few minutes and grinned at the other teen. There was so much to say, but they knew, right now wasn't the time.

"Come on," Draco said as he took a small step back, "we have to go find Hermione and see if she had any luck with the Grey Lady."

Harry nodded, though he hadn't lost his smile, and they hurried from the Chambers.

~…~

After running into Hermione, the three headed to the seventh floor and ran as fast as they could. When they got to the Barnabas painting, Harry paced the wall opposite three times and a door appeared. They headed inside, completely missing seeing three other students watching them.

Inside, they quickly moved through all the junk, trying to find where the tiara would be.

'_This is ridiculous! How the bloody hell are we supposed to find anything in here?!' _Draco thought as he looked through a few piles in front of him. After searching for another fifteen minutes, he heard Harry call out.

"Got it!"

Letting out a groan of relief, he looked over at Hermione and the two joined Harry.

"Good," Draco said, "Now let's get out of here."

"Not so fast," a voice said and three looked up to see Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle standing in front of them with their wands out.

"Malfoy," Blaise sneered, "you really did turn traitor, didn't you?"

Grey eyes flashed with sadness as Draco took in the sight of his former friends. He wished more than anything that this confrontation didn't have to happen. They had had been his friends for as long as he could remember and going against them was _not _something he wanted.

But he made his choice months ago to stand by Harry, and they made theirs.

"I chose the winning side Blaise," Draco said, and he tried to keep his emotions out. He knew from this point on, their friendship would never recover, and though it was expected, it still hurt. _'Don't let them see how upset you are over this.'_

"The Dark Lord is going to win," Crabbe said, his voice venomous.

"Not if we have anything to say about it," Hermione glared at the three boys.

"_Stupefy!" _Goyle shouted.

Draco, Harry and Hermione ducked the spell and fired off their own. when the three Slytherin boys ran off, they followed.

In his periphery, he saw that Hermione and Harry had been distracted by pixies, but he ran ahead. He really didn't want to fight the three of them, but he knew that he couldn't allow them to leave, knowing that they'd immediately get word to the Dark Lord and his followers about them being there.

"_Stupefy!" _Draco shouted the spell and watched with satisfaction as it hit Crabbe. He turned his wand on Blaise, but was stopped by Goyle casting his own spell. With horrified eyes, he watched his former friend cast the _Fiendfyre _spell, knowing that such a spell was too powerful for him to handle.

"Oh sweet merciful Merlin," Draco gasped out as he started backing away. He turned and ran, barely hearing Blaise revive Crabbe. He ran back to where Harry and Hermione were and explained what was going on, and soon enough, the three of them were running for their lives.

Draco spotted the brooms first and grabbed one, throwing the other two to Harry and Hermione. "Here! We'll have to fly our way out!"

Within seconds, they mounted the brooms and took off. They flew past Blaise and Crabbe and Harry looked back.

"We can't leave them!" he shouted at the other two.

'_He cannot be serious! Are you bloody kidding me?' _Draco looked at his boyfriend in shock. When he read the determination in the green eyes, he growled, "Potter, if we die saving their lives, I'm going to kill you!"

Letting out a curse, he turned back with Harry and the two of them soon had Blaise and Crabbe on the back of their brooms.

Hermione cleared a path through the fire straight to the exit and all five of them flew through and landed on the ground with a loud thump. Blaise and Crabbe quickly took off, leaving the other three on the ground.

Rolling to his knees, Draco watched as the diadem fell from Harry's pocket. Just looking at the thing gave him the shivers. He watched with grim satisfaction as Harry kicked it into the fire, and the black mist rose out of it, the fire completely destroying the diadem and Voldemort's Horcrux.

'_Soon you snake-faced bastard,' _Draco thought darkly, _'soon it'll all be over and you can go straight to Hades.'_

He got up from the ground and stood next to Harry, coughing as he did so from the fire.

"It's gone," he said between coughs. "How much left?"

"Just Nagini," Hermione panted out.

"And then Voldemort himself," Harry finished.

"Let's go kill that snake-faced bastard," Draco said and the three exchanged looks before taking off.

~…~

Just as they came to the corridor leading to the Great Hall, Draco came to a sudden stop.

"What is it?" Harry stopped as well when he saw that the blond did.

"Draco?" Hermione questioned as she too stopped.

"Harry," Draco turned to his boyfriend, "You told me that you were connected to _Him, _can you reverse the connection and figure out where he is? We need to destroy that snake, and you know she's going to be with him."

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks before the girl nodded.

"I can do that," Harry panted out as he fell back against the wall. He took calming breaths before he focused on the connection between him and Voldemort. He saw the water, the boathouse and the snake and he knew immediately where he was.

Harry was breathing heavily when he closed the connection and looked at the two in front of him. "I know where he is."

"Let's go then," Draco nodded and the three took off once more.

They got to the courtyard, but had to shift and change direction when the giant spiders appeared.

"Move!" Harry shouted when they ran into the trolls. The three ducked and dodged both trolls and spiders, trying to stay alive.

"We have to go under!" Draco yelled as he pointed to the trolls' feet.

Without another word, the trio did just that; he made their way past the trolls and the spiders and hurried down the walkway to the boathouse. When they got there, they heard Voldemort's voice and ducked behind a crate.

Draco shivered as he heard his godfather's voice. He was completely terrified. He couldn't lose him. The man had been like a second father to him, sometimes even more of a father than his own had been.

They heard Voldemort confess to Snape how the wand, while powerful, was still rejecting him and how it was because of the fact that Snape was owner, the true owner, because he had killed Dumbledore and they knew, before the night was over, Snape would die.

Hermione looked at Harry with horrified eyes and she grabbed one of his hands in hers squeezing tightly. She looked back at Draco and read the fear and sadness in his eyes. She could see that the blond wanted to go to Snape, and she reached back with her other hand and grabbed his arm closer to her.

Harry looked back at the two. He knew what Voldemort was talking about. Voldemort thought Snape was the master of the Elder Wand, but he wasn't.

"Nagini," Voldemort spoke, his never losing that soft and silky quality, "kill."

Hermione let out a gasp when she heard the command and they all jumped when Snape fell back against the glass wall. They heard Nagini attack the man, and were too frozen in fear and horror to move.

"No," Draco whispered as he squeezed Hermione's hand. He wanted to move, to do something, _anything_, but he couldn't.

They waited until they heard Voldemort leave, and then, they got up and headed inside. They saw their former professor lying on his back, snake bites all over his body and rushed towards him.

The man's dark eyes lit up briefly when he saw the blond teen.

"D-D-Draco," Snape stuttered out. He was relieved and happy that his godson was safe. Of course he had known that the teen had left with Potter and his friends that day at Malfoy Manor, as the Dark Lord had been severely displeased. While at the time, he had shown no reaction, inwardly, he had been rejoicing as he knew his godson had escaped.

"I'm here," Draco cried as he reached out to grab Snape's hand. He squeezed it briefly, "thank you for always protecting me."

Snape tried to smile, but he could feel his strength leaving. He turned his gaze to the other two teens and locked gaze with Harry. "Take it." he gestured to the tear running down his cheek, "Take it."

Harry understood what the man was saying and he looked at Hermione, "I need something; a jar or a bottle…anything."

Hermione fished through her bag and pulled out a bottle and handed it to him.

Harry took it and aimed the opening at the Snape's cheek, allowing the tear-memory to fall inside. When he was done, he leaned back and looked at the man who he had hated for the better part of his school career.

"You will-you will end it, won't you?" Snape questioned softly. He could feel his heart slowing.

"I will," Harry nodded. He looked at Hermione and Draco. "We will."

"You have your mother's eyes," Snape said, and with that, he took his final breath.

Harry stood up and left Draco kneeling over the man.

"I'm sorry," Draco whispered into Snape's chest, "I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough before."

"Dray," Harry said softly, his heart hurting for the boy he loved, "we have to go."

Draco nodded without looking. He shifted his gaze and looked at Snape's face. "Goodbye." With that, he stood up and joined the other two.

"Let's end this," Hermione said, her voice strong and filled with conviction.

"Once and for all," Draco finished. Determination was rushing through him.

The three left the room, but stopped when they heard the voice echo through their minds.

"_Harry Potter. You have fought valiantly, but in vain. I do not wish this. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a terrible waste. I therefore command my forces to retreat. In their absence, dispose of your dead with dignity. Harry Potter I now speak directly to you."_

All around Hogwarts, fighting ceased as they all listened.

Hermione stared at her best friend, her brother. She couldn't only imagine what he must be feeling to have that monster speak to him that way for everyone to hear.

"Harry," Draco whispered as he stepped in front of the brunet. He loved this boy, more than he ever thought possible, and he was scared. He was scared because of the huge possibility that Harry could die tonight and their chance of being together, of being happy and free, would be gone. He couldn't lose him…not after just finding him.

Harry looked over at his sister and his heart clenched in pain at the sheer sorrow and fear in her eyes. He never wanted her to be in this situation. His gaze drifted from her to Draco and he nearly cried. Before he could say anything, Voldemort's voice sounded again.

"_On this night, you have allowed others to die for you rather than face me yourself. There is no greater dishonour. Join me in the Forbidden Forest and confront your fate. If you do not do this, I shall kill every last man, woman and child who tries to conceal you from me."_

Harry couldn't speak. His heart was pounding, almost feeling as if it was trying to come out of his chest. Voldemort knew exactly how to strike at him, as he always did. Too many had already died tonight, and he couldn't allow anyone else to die and the bastard knew that. He was counting on it.

"It's what he wants," Hermione said as she moved to stand closer to the two boys.

"She's right," Draco nodded, almost desperately. He couldn't lose someone else he cared about.

"I know," Harry whispered, looking them both in the eyes, "but I have to do it. I can't let anyone else die for me." He dropped his gaze to the bottle in his hand, "I need to go to Dumbledore's office. I have to know what Snape wanted me to see."

"Let's go then," Hermione said, her eyes filling with tears. She could read the devastation in her brother's eyes and in that moment, she felt a surge of hatred towards Voldemort.

The three said nothing as they turned and headed inside. They passed bodies, but chose to ignore it. When they got to the Great Hall, most of the eyes turned to look at them. Of course, there was wariness and shock at seeing Draco with them, but the three of them ignored it.

Draco felt a little uncomfortable with everyone staring at him and in response, he stepped closer to Harry. They spotted the Weasleys, noting that Ron was with them and looking a little beat up. They hadn't really thought about the redhead since the day they had left him at Shell Cottage and were actually a little surprised to see him.

Since Harry and Hermione weren't sure if they would be welcomed or not—as they were sure that even though Draco had cast the spell on Ron, the redhead still managed to tell them something, mainly about Harry accepting the blond by his side—they kept their distance, and so did Draco. However, Harry broke away from the two when he caught sight of two people lying side by side just a short distance from where the Weasleys were. Heart in his throat, he rushed over and stopped, taking in the sight of Remus and Tonks lying motionless.

Draco and Hermione followed immediately and stood still as they too stared at the two people.

"Oh Harry," Hermione cried softly as she placed a hand on his shoulder. She knew that Remus was his last link to not only his parents, but to Sirius as well.

"Harry," Draco said as he leaned down to grab Harry's arm, gently pulling said teen to his feet. "I know you want to mourn them, but we have to go. You need to know what Uncle Sev showed you."

Harry nodded and allowed Draco to pull him up. The three made their way past the Weasleys, but before they could go any further, they were stopped by Mr. Weasley.

"Harry my boy," Arthur said as he pulled the teen into a hug. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Harry said as he pulled back. He looked the man over and then looked at the rest of the family. His gaze fell on George and he saw the complete sorrow in the teen's face and his eyes followed where he was looking and he saw Fred lying on the ground. "Oh no."

"I'm so sorry," Hermione said as she stood next to Harry.

"What is he doing here?" Ginny hissed as she stormed over to the three. She was pointing her wand at Draco and was shocked when both Harry and Hermione stepped in front of the blond.

"I don't know what Ron told you," Hermione said as she tightened her grip around her own wand, "and I'm not sure I care, but you're leaving Draco alone."

"Since when is he Draco?" Ginny demanded, unable to believe what she was seeing or hearing. She looked at Harry, her blue eyes flashing with anger. "Why are you protecting him?"

"Because he's not my enemy," Harry said calmly. He took his eyes off of her and looked at the family, "I'm sorry about Fred."

"You always could tell us apart, couldn't you?" George said, his eyes never leaving his twin.

"Yeah," Harry nodded and then he walked over to the twin and pulled him into a hug, shocking not only the Weasleys, but Hermione as well; it was the first time Harry had ever initiated contact with someone other than Hermione and because George himself had allowed the touch as he had shied away from his own family.

The redhead tightened the hug for a few seconds before pulling away, "When you kill him, do it for Freddie too, yeah?"

"I will," Harry nodded and then, he walked away, ignoring Ginny's splutters.

"You ok?" Draco asked, knowing how hard it must be for him to not be with them despite what Ron had done.

"I will be," Harry nodded, smiling briefly at the blond.

Hermione grabbed his hand and squeezed it and without saying anything else, the three made their way to the Headmaster's office. While Harry made his way inside to use the pensieve, Hermione and Draco opted to wait outside.

About ten minutes after the door closed behind Harry, Draco turned to Hermione. He saw the troubled look on her face and the way she bit her lip. He's spent enough time around her the last couple of months to read her.

"What is it?" Draco asked, "you look like you know something but you don't know how to say it."

Hermione stared at him in slight surprise. She hadn't thought the blond was able to read her that well. "It's nothing, it's just—

"Just what?" Draco asked.

"I think I know why Harry's able to know when You-Know-Who feels pain and how he's able to see through his mind," Hermione said.

"How?" Draco asked. He was curious as he himself had no idea how or why the brunet was able to do so. But, even as he asked the question, he got a sinking feeling that told him he really didn't want to know Hermione's answer.

"I think," Hermione started, but before she could go any further, the door opened and Harry walked out.

Harry kept his head bowed as he walked over to the two.

"Harry?" Hermione called softly as she stepped in front of him. She gently grabbed his chin and tilted his head up so that she could look into his eyes. "What did you see?"

"I," Harry stopped and swallowed around the lump in his throat. His eyes filled with tears as devastation, fear and betrayal racked through him, "I know why I can feel the Horcruxes when we find them, why I feel dizzy when they're destroyed and why I have a link to _his _mind. I think, I think deep down I already knew, but I didn't want to face it." green eyes searched brown and he almost smiled-almost because he couldn't make his muscles move enough to form it, "and from the look on your face, you know too."

"I'm so sorry," Hermione gave into the tears that had been building and threw her arms around her brother's neck. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier. I didn't want to be right."

"I know," Harry whispered as he hugged her back, "and I don't blame you."

"Harry," Draco stepped closer to the two, drawing their attention. He was scared by the looks on their faces, "what is going on?"

Harry pulled away from Hermione and turned to the blond. His heart was breaking at the pain he knew he was going to cause Draco. "I found out that I'm-I'm a Horcrux."

Draco took an involuntary step back, grey eyes widening with horror, "no." this was not what he expected. He knew what that meant; to kill Voldemort, Harry would have to…he couldn't even finish the thought.

"I'm sorry," Harry said as he reached out a hand to Draco. His heart was breaking at the devastation on the blond's face. After everything Draco had been through, to put him through this, it tore Harry to pieces.

"There has to be another way," Draco shook his head even as he grabbed Harry's outstretched hand in his own. "There has to be."

"There isn't," Harry said and then, he told them about the conversations between Snape and Dumbledore. When he was done, his green eyes were pleading with them, especially Draco, "don't you see? I have to die."

"How will you dying save us?" Draco demanded, his voice shaky. He didn't want to hear this; he wanted to take Harry and just leave. Get as far away from here as they could.

Harry looked away at the blond's words. He took a deep, shuddering breath before looking back at the blond. "Please…don't make this harder than it is."

"Don't!" Draco hissed, his grey eyes flashing dangerously with his emotions. "How can you expect me to stand here and listen to you telling me you have to die? Not when-" Draco cut himself off, trying, and failing, to get his emotions under control, "not when I just got you."

"I'm sorry," Harry repeated, his green eyes filled with tears and pain. He never wanted to hurt the blond, but that's exactly what he was doing. Sure he had always thought in the back of his mind he would die during the war, but hearing it out loud was still a shock. He didn't want to accept it, but he knew he had to.

"You have to-you have to go," Hermione cried out. She was losing her brother and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Find Nagini," Harry told the two of them, "find her and kill her, and then, he can finally die. It's the only way."

"I don't want to lose you," Draco whispered, his voice hoarse from the unshed tears.

"I don't either," Hermione added on, not even wiping the tears spilling over onto her cheeks.

"And I don't want you to lose me either," Harry swallowed the lump in his throat. "But we have no choice." He had to leave; if he stayed any longer, he would change his mind. "Kill Nagini and both of you, stay safe."

With that, he pulled away from them and started towards the entrance.

"Harry, wait!" Draco called out before the brunet could get any further.

Harry turned around, mouth opened to ask what the blond wanted, but the words never made it past his lips as the blond crushed their mouths together. Automatically, Harry's arms went around Draco's neck as the blond's own went around his waist.

Their tongues battled for dominance, and after a few seconds, Harry gave in to Draco. The kissed continued on, becoming more passionate by the minute as well as desperate. After almost five minute, the two broke away panting heavily.

Draco rested his forehead against the shorter teen, staring into the green eyes he loved so much. "I'm not sure I can let you go."

"You have to," Harry whispered. He surged forward, capturing Draco's lips once more before pulling away. He turned to Hermione and threw his arms around her neck. "I love you."

"I love you too," Hermione sniffled, squeezing him tightly.

Harry drew back from the hug and quickly turned away from them, almost jogging as he made his way out the entrance and to the Forbidden Forest.

Draco came to stand next to Hermione and the two watched as he walked away, unsure if whether or not they would see him again.

"He's going to come back," Hermione said softly, her voice filled with slight desperation.

Draco turned to look at her, grey eyes near overflowing with sadness. He knew her words were just empty faith. Harry may have survived the killing curse once, but to do so again…

"We have to do what he says," Draco reached out and grabbed her hand, "we have to find that snake."

"It's with Vo—

"Don't!" Draco cut her off, "there's a curse on the name. If you say it, then _He_ knows immediately where you are. It's like a locator charm." He frowned, "although, that is a moot point right now considering."

Hermione's brows furrowed and she bit her lip, "makes sense." She shook her head, "what I was going to say was, the snake is with You-Know-Who and _he's_ waiting in the Forest for Harry."

Both turned their eyes to the outside.

"So we have to wait," Draco said softly.

"Yeah," Hermione frowned, "unfortunately."

~…~

Harry's heart pounded as he made his way into the Forbidden Forest; he was completely terrified. He so badly wanted to look back, but he knew that if he did, if he even caught a glimpse of moonlit blond hair, his resolved to do this would crumble and he would hurry back to Draco's arms. So instead, he steeled himself and continued on past the trees, going further into the darkness. After a while, he stopped and pulled the snitch from his pocket.

He turned it over in his hands, his eyes on it; thoughts of Hermione and Draco drifted across his mind. He and the blond had just found each other and he really didn't want to leave him; and Hermione. She was his sister in everything but blood. He trusted her more than anyone else. He knew she needed him to always be there, to always be a support, but he couldn't.

Briefly, his eyes slipped close. Taking a deep breath, he whispered the words he didn't want to say, but had to;

"I am going to die."

He felt a breeze and then, a sudden rush of cold air. He felt the cold brush of air on his arm and his eyes opened. His breath hitched as eyes focused on the people in front of him.

"Hello pup," Sirius whispered with a sad smile.

Harry wanted so badly to fly into his godfather's arms; it was only the thought that Sirius was a ghost that stopped him. "Siri." His green eyes shifted to the man standing on the left side of Sirius, "Remus."

"Cub," Remus smiled and gave a slight nod.

Harry shifted and took in the man standing on the other side of Sirius. He saw his own features staring back at him and knew from memories who this was. Tears filled his eyes, "dad."

"Hello son," James smiled at his son. Despite the circumstances, he was glad to see his son.

Harry took a slight breath and turned to the last person, the one standing next to him. Green met green as mother and son stared at each other. The tears that had filled Harry's eyes spilled over onto his cheeks, "mum."

If ghosts could cry, all four would at the pain and longing in Harry's near whispered word.

"My little boy," Lily reached up a hand, outlining Harry's face in a ghostly caress. "Never did I wish this for you."

"I-I know what I have to do," Harry whispered as the three men walked over to where he and Lily stood, "but, I'm scared."

"It's alright to be scared cub," Remus said gently.

"We'd be worried if you weren't," Sirius added on; his hand reached out as if to touch his godson, but it dropped at the last second.

Harry looked at all four of them, "does it hurt?"

"Dying?" Sirius asked, a sad look in his eyes. When Harry nodded, he continued, "quicker than falling asleep."

"You're nearly there son," James said.

"I never-I never wanted any of you to die for me," Harry said, his breath hitching on a sob. He turned to Remus, "Teddy-

"You'll tell him about his father, and mother," Remus said lovingly, "and how we died so that he could live in a world different to ours. One day, he will understand."

Harry swallowed the sob that rose, "you-you'll stay with me?"

"Always sweetheart," Lily stepped even closer to her son, longing to take him in her arms.

"Are you ready?" Sirius asked.

"As I'll ever be," Harry reached up a hand to wipe his tears. He watched as the four of them stood next to him; his parents on his left side and his godfathers on his right. He looked at each of them before shifting his gaze forward. Taking a deep breath, he started walking. He was aware of the four around him and was grateful for their presence.

He came to a clearing and he saw Voldemort surrounded by his Death Eaters and he could hear his heartbeat in his ear. Again, he thought of his parents, and Sirius and Remus, he thought of Teddy, and Tonks, and he thought of Hermione and Draco; he was doing this for them, and in that moment, he was ready to die for them.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort snarled. He raised his wand and pointed at the teen. Anticipation rose in the air from the Death Eaters behind him. "_Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry's eyes slipped close the Killing Curse rushed towards him and the green light enveloped him. The last thing he saw was the triumph on Voldemort's face and then, no more.

~…~

The next thing Harry knew, he was lying flat on the ground and Narcissa was kneeling over him.

Narcissa placed her hand on his chest and let out a soft gasp when she felt the rise and fall of his chest. Bending forward, she allowed her hair to fall so that it would act as a shield against the eyes of the Dark Lord and his followers.

"Draco," Narcissa whispered, "is he alive?" her son was her only concern.

Harry's mind flashed to the last time he saw the blond and he replied with a soft whisper, "Yes."

Narcissa let a gasp of relief before she turned quickly to face the Dark Lord. "He's dead!"

Her words echoed in the Forest and silenced reigned for a few seconds before pandemonium erupted as the Dark Side cheered for their victory over the Light's side; after all, with their supposed Saviour dead, who would stop them?

Voldemort's face was split into a grin as he directed Hagrid to pick up Harry's body. He had won; the fight that he had been fighting for years, the victory that had so eluded him was now in his grasp.

Harry made sure to keep his body limp and his breathing even as Hagrid picked him up; he could hear the half giant crying and felt a twinge of guilt, but he resolutely pushed it away. _'Not yet…it's not the right time.' _He thought to himself.

With Voldemort in front and Hagrid holding Harry's body just behind him, the group of Death Eaters made their way back to the school.

~…~

It was a shout that drew their attention and Hermione's head snapped up as she looked around.

"What was that?" She asked Draco.

"I don't know," Draco replied as he too looked around. He had a really bad feeling.

They looked around and saw everyone moving to the entrance and after exchanging looks, they followed as well.

Hermione and Draco pushed their way through the crowd and stopped in shock, as did everyone else, when they saw Voldemort leading his army straight to them.

"What's that?" Ginny asked as she took a step closer, "who does Hagrid has in his arms?"

"Oh no," Hermione whispered, her eyes filling with tears.

"Is that Harry?" Ginny cried out. "NO!" she tried to run to the half giant, but her father pulled her back and held her tight.

"Harry Potter is dead!" Voldemort shouted for all the wizards and witches in Hogwarts to hear.

Shocked gasps echoed throughout the crowd and Ginny let out another scream of 'no'.

Voldemort chuckled darkly at the defeat he could see spreading across the remainder of the Light's forces. "Join me, or end up like him."

"Draco," Lucius stepped away from the Dark Lord's ranks and headed for his son, "Come. Come Draco."

"Draco," Narcissa called out, begging without words, for her son to take his father's hand.

The crowd near Hermione and Draco moved away, some turning to stare at the blond.

Draco looked from his father to his mother, to Harry's body and then to Hermione before looking back at his father. He took a step back, "No."

Lucius was stunned; it was plain to see on the normally stoic Malfoy. And he wasn't the only one. Most everyone was shocked as well that the blond teen, who had always been in his father's footsteps, had defied the Elder Malfoy.

"No?" Lucius repeated, unable to believe what he was hearing. "If this is due to the events that transpired those few months ago, then Draco, everything will be alright."

"It doesn't matter father," Draco shook his head, "I'm not coming with you because I don't want to. My place is here."

"By the side of a Mudblood?" Lucius snarled, seeing his son step even closer to the Granger girl.

Draco swallowed; he knew that he had gone against his father's wishes back in May, and he was still terrified of Lucius Malfoy, but, he knew he couldn't go back. Not now, not when he had finally opened up his heart and gave it to Harry, not when he stopped being the whiny, bigot prat he had been. All his life he had followed Lucius' orders and though he loved his father, following the man had brought him nothing but pain and misery. So, he took a deep breath and straightened his spine. "Yes father, at the side of a Mud—at the side of Hermione…and Harry."

The crowd of Death Eaters laughed.

"Potter is dead," Lucius spat, anger filling him at his heir's continued defiance.

Devastation flashed through Draco's eyes at that and Lucius let out a soft gasp when he saw it.

Hermione reached out and grabbed Draco's hand, squeezing it in comfort. Draco turned slightly and smiled a small smile in thanks. He then turned back to his father. "I'm staying right here."

Voldemort, upset and angered over the young Malfoy's refusal, snarled at the crowd, "So, all of you feel the same way as young Draco? None of you will join us? We _are _the winning side. We have won; that fool Dumbledore is dead, and now, so is your precious Saviour. There is no one to stop us. Join us, and your life shall be spared."

The crowd tittered but no one made a move.

Neville stepped forward.

"Neville," Ginny reached for the teen, "No!"

Neville ignored her and took another step forward, ignoring the taunts from the Death Eater, especially Bellatrix's. "I have something to say."

The Death Eaters laughed, but Voldemort gave a smirk as he shushed them, "be quiet. Let him speak."

"Harry may be d-dead," Neville thought his heart would break on that word, "but that doesn't mean he's gone. He defended us, even when some of us didn't deserve it. He fought so that we could have a better chance at a better life. He gave his life so that we could be free."

"Free?!" Bellatrix cackled.

"Shut up!" Neville roared at the witch, shocking Bellatrix into silence and everyone as well as they had never heard the teen raise his voice. Neville took deep, calming breaths, "You think that just because Harry's dead that you won? You didn't! We will always know what he did for us and we will always fight and because we will always fight, we will never give in!"

Hermione kept a hold of Draco's hand, tugging the blond behind her as she went to stand next to Neville. "He's right! You may have won the war _Voldemort_," she spat his name, making said man growl, "but that means nothing! You'll never have our loyalty. What Harry did for us, it will resonate farther than you think! You think that just because you've beaten us today everything is over? It's not! Harry gave us something you never could! He gave us hope! He gave us strength!"

Hermione's chest heaved as she panted. She could feel her heart pounding and rush of adrenaline moving through her.

"You insolent witch!" Bellatrix snarled and before Voldemort or anyone could react, she raised her wand at Hermione and fired a spell.

"_Protego!" _a shield went up in front of Hermione just as Harry jumped from Hagrid's arms.

There was stunned silence for about a minute and then, pandemonium; the Light side erupted into cheers while the Dark side shouted in anger. Immediately, spells started flying.

"Potter is mine!" Voldemort's roar sounded above the noise and Harry took off running.

~…~

"Move Hermione!" Draco shouted even as he pulled the girl out of the way of a spell. He had lost sight of his parents when the fighting had started and though he worried, right now, he had more important things to think about; like keeping him and Hermione alive.

"Thanks," Hermione panted out as she fell to her knees next to him, "Have you seen the snake?"

"No," Draco replied, blocking a spell while firing off his own. "It's somewhere around here though, I'm sure of it."

No more was said between the two as they fought against the Death Eaters that came their way. They came across Neville and the three fought back to back to back.

"Have you guys seen Luna?" Neville shouted to them over the noise.

"NO!" Hermione replied as she blocked a spell. "Why?"

"I'm bloody mad for her!" Neville revealed with a grin. His eyes were slightly crazed, making Draco instantly think of Bellatrix and he shivered slightly. _'If I didn't know better, I'd swear Longbottom was actually Aunt Bella's son.'_

Despite the situation they were in, Hermione couldn't stifle the laugh that erupted from her throat.

"Hey Longbottom," Draco called out.

"What?" Neville turned around to face the teen.

"The Dark Lord's snake," Draco panted out, "if you see it, try and kill it."

"Why?" Neville asked as he dodged a curse.

"'Cause it's the only way for Harry to finish this," Hermione finished.

Neville didn't even question it; he just nodded in agreement, "Ok."

No more was said as the three of them threw themselves back in the fighting. Sometime later, Hermione and Draco got separated from Neville and found themselves on the main staircase and they weren't alone; they had finally found Nagini.

"Great!" Draco panted out as he held tightly to Hermione's hand as the two dodged the snake's attacks, "we found her. Now, how do we kill her?"

Hermione ducked behind a pillar, pulling the blond with her, "do you still have the Basilisk fang?"

"Yeah," Draco nodded. He stared at her in confusion before his grey eyes lit up in recognition.

Hermione saw it and grinned, "exactly."

"Only one problem," Draco said as he leaped from behind the pillar and went down the stairs. He threw spell after spell behind him, hoping to hit the snake.

"What's that?" Hermione shouted out a she too fired off her own spells.

"How are we gonna get close to enough to do it?" Draco replied. "Whoa!" he stripped over a large piece of debris and stumbled to the ground.

"Draco!" Hermione fell to her knees next to him, "Come on! Get up! We've got to go!"

She pulled him to his feet and the two staggered away from the snake.

"Do you have the fang?" Hermione asked.

"NO!" Draco looked around frantically and spotted the Basilisk fang lying a few feet away. "There it is!"

He moved to go after it, but Nagini brought her tail around and slammed it on the ground in front of him, sending him back before whipping the fang away.

"Damnit!" Hermione cursed.

Draco actually paused and looked over at her with a smirk, "Did I hear right? Did Prim and Proper Granger just swear?"

"Oh Stuff it!" Hermione retorted, though her lips twitched as a smile tried to emerge. But she lost it when Nagini reared up at them.

The two held to each other even as they backed away from the snake. Then, out of nowhere, they heard a yell and looked up to see Neville jumping off of a broken pillar, the Gryffindor sword held high above his head as he brought it down on the snake, cleanly slicing through its neck.

Nagini's body twitched as it collapsed to the floor, the head rolling a few feet away; a black mist rose out of the snake and they could see the Dark Lord's face for a brief second before it disappeared. All around, the Dark forces stopped their battle as they watched the death of their master's beloved pet. The snake's body gave one final spasm before it stilled.

Hermione turned to Draco, "We have to find Harry. We've got to let him know the snake's dead."

"He could be anywhere," Draco said even as he looked around, hoping to spot the teen.

The two moved through the crowd, ignoring Molly who was battling Bellatrix, as they tried to find their friend. The sound of a battle caught Hermione's attention and she turned in the direction, letting out a gasp when she saw Harry and Voldemort in the destroyed courtyard still fighting.

"There!" Hermione pointed out to Draco. The two took off running, but they weren't the only ones; others had heard the sound of the battle and had seen the two wizards as well. So as it was, everyone who could, made their way to the courtyard.

Hermione and Draco skittered to a stop when they were just a few feet away. They were aware of the crowd behind them, but neither one paid attention.

All around, both sides watched the battle between the Saviour and the Dark Lord, knowing that the future of the Wizarding World was about to change; either for the better, or the worse.

Draco felt as if his heart would pound right out of his chest, it was beating so hard. When Harry had told them he had to die, fear had filled him, then hearing the Dark Lord say the green eyed teen was die had devastated him so much he had just wanted to die; and then, elation had filled him when he saw Harry fire the spell to protect Hermione before jumping from the half giant's arms. But now, looking at the boy he loved, the fear was taking over.

His eyes tracked the battle; watching as the two dodged each other's spells before their final spell locked and a dome like structure formed over the two. He could see the exhaustion and pain on Harry's face and knew that the teen was close to giving up. He couldn't allow that to happen. Without a second thought, he took off from Hermione's side and ran towards Harry, ignoring the shouting behind him. He passed through the dome without thought or fear and when he reached Harry, he threw one arm around Harry's waist, and reached out to curl his other hand around Harry's outstretched arm.

Seconds later, he felt a gentle touch on his back and turned his head to see Hermione standing on his left side.

~…~

Hermione was frozen as she watched the fight between Harry and Voldemort. She wanted to help him, but she had no idea how to do so and hated the fact that all she could do was watch until it was over. She, like Draco, could read the exhaustion on Harry's face and even though his reflexes were still fast, she could tell that they were a bit off.

She bit her lip, aching with the need to do _something_, but knowing there was nothing she could do. A soft gasp escaped her when she saw the two spells lock and the dome like structure that appeared around the Dark Lord and Harry. A brush of movement startled her and when she looked, she saw Draco running towards the two fighting men.

"Draco!" she called after him, but the blond ignored her. She watched him go through the dome, like nothing was there and watched as he wrapped an arm around Harry's waist, pulling her best friend back into his chest as his other arm held Harry's wand hand. Not even thinking, she took off towards them, ignoring as well the yelling that was around her.

When she got there, she touched Draco's back gently as she came to a stop on his left side. They smiled at each other and she allowed her hand to wrap around Draco's waist as the other wrapped around Harry's.

"We're here Harry," Hermione whispered to her best friend, "you can do this."

Hermione started when she felt the touch on her arm and looked over to see Neville standing next to her with Luna.

Before anyone of them could say anything, they heard a 'whoosh' sound and to their immense shock, they saw the spirits of Lily, James, Sirius and Remus. The four surrounded them, with Sirius, Remus and James behind and around the teens, while Lily stood on Harry's other side.

~…~

Harry was tired; all he wanted to do was collapse, but he knew he couldn't do that. He had to finish this. If he didn't, then everyone who died would've done so in vain. Keeping the spell locked was taking a lot of his control as he was already tired from dying and then coming back and then the fights with Voldemort and of course, landing hard on the courtyard had not helped his case any. But he couldn't give up; too many people were counting on him.

He tried to put more force behind his spell, but he could tell he was weakening and by the look on Voldemort's face, the madman realized it as well. Just as he thought it was all going to be over, he felt the hand around his waist and the chest against his back.

"What?" startled, he looked up and saw Draco holding him and couldn't stop the relief that filled him. When Draco's other hand grabbed his outstretched hand, he relaxed back into Draco's chest, allowing the blond to hold him tighter.

Seconds later, he felt another arm and looked over to see Hermione smiling at him.

"We're here Harry," she told him, "You can do this."

He smiled at her and it became wider when he saw Neville and Luna, and then, his parents and godfathers. Filled with a renewed strength, and the support pouring off of those around him, Harry straightened his body, keeping contact with the others, especially Draco, and took a firm and combative stance.

"Do you want to know why the wand still isn't working for, even after you killed Snape?" Harry shouted at Voldemort. "It's not working because Snape wasn't its master."

"Severus killed Dumbledore," Voldemort snarled as he pushed more magic towards Harry, "and I killed Severus, therefore, the wand is mine!"

"Snape may have killed Dumbledore," Harry grinned, startling Voldemort, shocking the older man and making him lose his composure a little, "but he wasn't the owner. Draco Malfoy disarmed Dumbledore that night, making him the owner of the Elder Wand. When I disarmed Draco at Malfoy Manor, the ownership transferred to me and that means,"

He focused on his magic and pushed it through the wand towards Voldemort, who tried to do the same, but soon found himself overpowered; the Elder Wand flew from his hand as Harry's spell connected and threw him off his feet. He landed hard on the ground a few feet away.

Stepping away from Draco, Harry reached out and called the wand towards him, grinning when it soared towards him. He grabbed it out of the air and pointed it towards Voldemort. "It's over Voldemort. You've lost."

"Never!" Voldemort growled as he struggled to his feet and pulled his second wand out and turned it on Harry. "Even if you kill me Potter, I will come back!"

Harry smirked, "You won't. I destroyed them all Voldemort; the cup, the snake, the diadem…they're all gone."

Voldemort's face went from shocked to blank as he searched out with his powers for his Horcruxes. When he couldn't feel them, his face twisted as pure, white-hot rage rushed through him. "You insolent brat! AVADA KEDAVRA!"

As the green light shot towards him, Harry ignored the gasps of horror, and delight, from everyone as he used the Elder Wand to transfigure a rock into a mirror and brought it up in front of him just in time for the spell to hit, only to be rebounded back to Voldemort.

Seeing his spell coming back towards him, Voldemort was too shocked to do anything. His last thought was the disbelief that he had actually lost and, then he was engulfed in the green light.

When it cleared, there was nothing there. Voldemort, the Darkest Lord of all time, had finally and truly been defeated.

Harry collapsed to the ground in pure exhaustion as cheers rang up around him. He could barely make out the sounds of apparition from the Dark supporters and didn't really care. He had done it; Voldemort was gone.

"Come on," Draco said softly as he reached down and pulled Harry to his feet. He held the brunet's head between his hands, searching the green eyes.

"I'm ok," Harry mumbled even as he brought up his shaking hands to hold Draco's own. "I'm ok."

"Harry!" Hermione cried as she threw her arms around him, "I thought we'd lost you. I thought you'd died."

"For a moment there I did," Harry confessed as he wrapped his arms around her, hugging her to him tightly.

They stayed locked in their embrace for a few more minutes and then they pulled back from each other.

"Are you ok?" Harry asked, needing to know that she hadn't been hurt when he had left her.

"Am I ok?" Hermione let out a watery chuckle, unable to believe that he was asking her that after everything he'd been through. "I'm fine Harry."

"Good." Harry smiled and stepped slightly away from her. He turned towards the celebrating crowd and let out a sigh as his body fell forward.

"Harry!" Draco yelped as he stepped close and caught him, scared that something was wrong with the teen, something that they hadn't seen.

"I'm just tired," Harry mumbled as he leaned against the blond, allowing his body to relax into Draco's hold.

"So it's over?" Neville asked, looking at the three of them and also the ground of Hogwarts, "it's really over?"

"The bastard's gone Nev," Harry looked over at his friend, "for good this time."

Neville's body seemed to sink with relief, "thank Merlin."

"Thank Harry," Luna giggled as she grabbed Neville's free hand and laced their fingers together.

"So what now?" Draco asked as he shifted his arms around Harry, allowing the teen to be more comfortable.

"Now," Hermione sighed as she looked at the crowd before looking back at Harry. She saw that his eyes were slowly closing, "Now, we find someplace quiet, where we won't be disturbed so that Harry can rest properly."

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Draco nodded at the girl. He looked at Neville and Luna, "Are you two going to be with us?"

Neville and Luna exchanged looks before looking back at the blond.

"I think that would be wonderful," Luna smiled and then, she started humming as she lightly swung her and Neville's joined hands.

"I have to see Dumbledore first," Harry breathed out as he forced his eyes open. "I have to tell him everything."

"Harry," Draco started, not liking the idea at all. He understood that his boyfriend looked up to the man, and he himself was still feeling guilty over his part in the man's death, but Harry had just been through hell and he needed rest and as far as he was concerned, that was more important that seeing Dumbledore.

"I have to Draco," Harry looked up at the blond, "after that, I'll rest."

"You promise?" Hermione asked as she grabbed his free hand.

"I promise," Harry repeated and squeezed their fingers together.

"It's best to get it over with now," Neville shrugged, "you know? While it's still fresh in his mind?"

Draco looked at them each in turn before sighing, "Gryffindors. Fine, but the moment you're done talking to Dumbledore, you're going to rest, even if I have to knock you out."

Harry smiled, "ok."

So, the five of them made their way back into the school, bypassing all the well-wishers and congratulators, the bound Death Eaters with Aurors standing close by, and even the Weasleys as they made their way to Dumbledore's office.

~…~

Half an hour later, the five were sitting on the stairs as they watched everyone tend to their injuries while taking care of others and seeing to the dead.

Draco's eyes scanned the room, searching out his parents.

"They're over there," Harry said softly as he gestured with his hand to where he saw the elder Malfoys.

Draco turned his gaze in the direction Harry was pointing, not even thinking about how the brunet knew what he was doing and who he was looking for, and saw his parents sitting off by themselves, holding on to each other and looking around—no doubt searching for him.

"It's going to be hard isn't it?" Hermione murmured loud enough for all of them to hear her.

"What is?" Neville asked as he wrapped an arm around Luna's shoulders.

"Readjusting to life after the war," Hermione explained as she let her head dropped onto Harry's shoulder with a sigh. "It's not going to be easy."

"Nothing worth having is easy to obtain," Luna said.

"That is true," Draco agreed with a nod, "there's so much we have to do though."

"Rebuilding the school," Neville said as he looked around.

"Finding my parents," Hermione added with a frown; wiping her parents' memory of her, and her magic, and sending them out of England was one of the hardest things she ever had to do, even if it was for their own protection.

"Forgiving mine," Draco sighed as he looked at his parents once more.

Harry winced as his gaze settled on the Weasley family and he saw that they were all—with the exception of George who was sitting next to Fred's body—staring where he and the others were sitting. He knew they would expect—demand more likely—explanations for everything that had happened, including why he was snuggling up to Draco, and why Ron wasn't with them, but Draco was and it was something he wasn't looking forward to.

"We have so much to deal with," Harry said finally, his eyes still on the Weasleys. "And none of it will be easy."

"I find that problems are much easier to solve when you do them together," Luna said.

All five exchanged looks and then, shared a smile.

"So," Neville spoke, "together?"

"Together," Harry, Hermione, Draco and Luna echoed as one.

* * *

_**To be concluded in **__Aftermath_

**A/N 4: **and that's the story. It's long, I know, and I'm sorry about it, but hopefully, you guys like it. Please, review so I can know what you thought of this.

* * *

_Aftermath_ is not going to be a one-shot like this or _Single Moment_, but instead, a short story because there's too much to deal with to just let it be a one-shot; things such as Hermione finding her parents and dealing with the whole drama of not only convincing them she's their daughter and that magic is real, but also the issue of her wiping their memories and going off to fight a war; Draco will have to deal with his parents and their—his own included—trials for their part in the Battle at Hogwarts; Harry will have to deal with the Weasleys and they all have to adjust to life after Voldemort.

* * *

_**Rise of the Dark Angel update: **_the story is NOT abandoned. However, both I and my co-author have been dealing with some serious family issues these last few months—for me, it's since last year—and things haven't been easy. The new chapter is already written, but I am adding more to it, and Tonks has the Paris scenes that need to be added and then, it'll be ready for posting. I'm hoping I'll hear back from her sometime soon. In the meantime, I'll work on the other HP stories so that I can have something for you guys. So…I guess in a way, _**RDA **_is on a temporary hiatus…


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